Self-Reflections with
Lisa Eldridge

Calling all beauty fans. To mark the exclusive-to-Selfridges launch of her namesake brand, legendary make-up artist Lisa Eldridge spoke to our beauty editor (and Lisa superfan) about how she got into make-up, her relationship with beauty and identity, and what her Real Housewives of Beverly Hills opening line would be. Watch below and read on for more about the collection.

When I was 20, while searching ‘how to apply eyeliner to hooded eyes’ on YouTube, I stumbled across a video by a woman named Lisa Eldridge. Beauty tutorials were few and far between in 2010, and I quickly fell down a rabbit hole, clicking from one video to the next, transfixed by Lisa’s ability to totally transform her face – from how to cheat eight hours’ sleep to entire looks that embodied Marilyn Monroe, followed by a six-minute history lesson in the best and worst make-up looks of the past century. My love affair with beauty started there – and, as Lisa’s 230 million YouTube views show, I’m not the only one. 

Lisa’s interest in beauty began when she was just six years old, after finding a box of her mother’s teenage make-up at her grandmother’s house. “I was so taken with all these objects. The smell of them, the colours, the textures. So, I started using it to draw faces and colour in. I guess I didn’t realise, but I was making face charts even back then,” Lisa explains. “This opened up a wonderful world of me experimenting with my own face.” What followed was an impressive career, collaborating with industry legends – think Vogue covers with photographer Nick Knight and icons Naomi Campbell and Rihanna. And she’s a regular at glam squads for the likes of Kate Winslet and Dua Lipa.  

In 2018, Lisa launched her own brand with a limited-edition collection of True Velvet Lipsticks that sold out in hours. Now, for the very first time, you can try Lisa Eldridge products in person thanks to a permanent residency at Selfridges London, and pop-ups coming to our Manchester Trafford store from 19 June to 2 July and Birmingham from 10 to 23 July. 

As you’d expect, when I discovered our beauty buyers were ‘in talks’ with Lisa and her team, I let out a little squeal. Anticipation was high when a box of products arrived, and after a thorough testing period, I can confirm they’re as good as I’d hoped. Take her cult Velvet Lip Colour lipsticks: the highly pigmented shades have a velvety texture that’s unlike anything I’ve ever used before. 

Other favourites include the Seamless Skin Foundation – a lightweight but buildable formula that gives skin a soft-focus natural glow (perfect for wedding season) and pairs beautifully with her radiant Elevated Glow Highlighter. If you like an easy, one-fits-all product, the Liquid Lurex Eyeshadows can be swiped over the lid for a wash of colour or you can buff one of the bold shades around your eyes for a smoky look in seconds. Her most recent launch into skincare includes a Skin and Makeup Enhancing Mist and a seriously good Skin Enhancing Treatment Cleanser that removes every trace of make-up and leaves your skin feeling comfortably hydrated – and the cleansing and exfoliating cloths are incredibly soft. In essence, it’s all as beautiful and carefully considered as you’d expect from her.